Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting For Cut-out Sugar Cookies

Thanks to Krusteaz for supplying the cookie mix!

Ah my favorite time of year is here, Christmas time! Time to bust out all the decorations, and begin cooking treats and decorating with the family and making new traditions. For us, our son is just getting old enough to really understand the time of the year so we’re really excited to start some of our own family traditions! One of my favorite is decorating cut-out sugar cookies, then decorating them with different colored frosting and sprinkles.

So I figure, lets save some time on the cookie dough and spend a little more time with the frosting. How does cream cheese frosting with a little hit of lemon sound?

Are you drooling? If not, do you have a pulse? you should check it… ????????????

So Krusteaz was kind enough to send me a package full of cookies and other goodies to play with that made my life a lot easier when it comes to baking. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy making cookies from scratch, but having a mix where all I need to add is butter and egg with a toddler running around helps speed things up a bit!

They even give you instructions on the box for a thicker batch to use for cut-out cookies. So its like, I don’t even need to think. Every now and then, I love not having to think, just put it together and make up some delicious frosting to go along with it.

So let’s talk about this frosting. It’s a cream cheese frosting, so it’s nice an fluffy, and freaking delicious! Adding some lemon zest and juice adds this really amazing flavor that will make these cookies really stand out. I mean they’re going to go fast anyways, but this frosting will force everyone to savor them for just a split second longer!

And after a few hours of sitting (if they’ll last that long) the frosting will thicken up just enough to let your teeth sink into them and it almost remind me of the frosting that comes with those delicious sugar cookies that you can get at the bakery in at the grocery store, which has always been my favorite.

Like, buying a whole box and eating them in one sitting favorite. Yeah.. I’ll have to put that on the “things I can’t do anymore because i’m not in my 20’s” list.

So the best part of this, decorating the cookies. Brayden, is infatuated with all things Christmas and Christmas tree’s right now. So of course when I ask him, what he wants to put on his cookie. It’s the Christmas tree sprinkles.

I wish I had a tripod to take a shot of this because it was the best. Our little 2 year old is getting so big now and wants to do everything himself so of course he wants to shake the sprinkles on himself, and after watching me do it for the pictures he already knew how to do it himself. It’s never ceases to amaze me how quick they pick things up even by watching what you do, almost scary sometimes!

A Quick Tip

A quick note before going on to the recipe, the batch of icing was more than enough to accompany a box of the krusteaz sugar cookie mix,which made about 20 medium sized cookies. It could probably spread to 30-40 cookies depending on how thick you spread it.

Anyways, I found that it lasts in the fridge for about a week, and you can warm it up for about 7 second in the microwave so that it’s spreadable again if you need to do another batch the next week. Yes, need. Not want.

Mix and cook the Krusteaz Butter Cookie mix as instructed. Let them cool on a rack while you prepare the frosting.
TIP: I like to store them in the freezer while the oven is preheating and roll them out on flour, this helps keep them manageable so that you can use cut outs easier!

Prepare the Frosting

In a bowl, soften the cream cheese and butter in the micowave for about 15 seconds.

whip it up with an electric beater for about 2-3 minutes so it's nice and fluffy.

Stir in vanilla extract, lemon zest and juice

Separate the frosting into 3 equal portions. Add red and greed food coloring so you have one white, one green, and one red. I used about 10-12 drops for each.

with a spoon spread the frosting on each cookie, then decorate with sprinkles. Enjoy!

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So here’s the thing – I’m not a big frosting person, but the frosting that you’re talking about on the cookies in the bakery and store I LOVE. Therefore, I must make a batch of this. And I like Krusteaz, so using one of their mixes is a great shortcut (and the addition of lemon zest sounds just right). Plus, they’re so pretty!

Amy Stafford

I love this creamy version of cookie frosting. We have a local bakery here who sells cookies with this frosting and I LOVE them. Can’t wait to make my own.

Renee Goerger

I WAS drooling over you photos (which is good because then it means I do have a pulse)! I wish you could have shared a photo of your two year old. How precious that you get to spend baking time together. Merry Christmas and happy sprinkling!

Des @ Life’s Ambrosia

Loving this twist on sugar cookies! My mother in law loves lemon, I bet she would love these!

Awe. . .how cute that your son was able to help with the cookies this year. Such a precious moment. Judging by the photos he did a wonderful job (and perhaps can be the chief cookie maker next year. 🙂 BTW. . .that cream cheese lemon frosting. . .my heart started to beat a little faster over the thought of that.